1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a slide fastener knit/woven tape and a slide fastener stringer in which fastener elements are attached to the same tape, and more specifically to a slide fastener knit/woven tape which allows the fastener elements to be sewed to the fastener tape easily and accurately and has excellent drape performance, flexibility and excellent texture, and a slide fastener stringer which employs the same tape and ensures high coupling strength.
2. Description of the Related Art
Usually, conventional slide fastener tapes have been manufactured by weaving with a narrow width weaving machine or by knitting with a warp knitting machine. The slide fastener stringers (hereinafter referred to as stringer) on which various kinds of fastener elements are attached are manufactured according to any one of the following methods. One method is to attach coil-like or zigzag-like continuous elements made of synthetic resin along an fastener element attaching portion disposed on one side edge of the fastener tape by sewing. Another method is to weave or knit a monofilament of a single body in which element coupling heads, upper/lower leg portions extending from both ends of the coupling heads and connecting portion for connecting the ends of the upper/lower leg portions between adjoining fastener elements are formed by a stamping forming method or the like, at the same time when the fastener tape is knit or woven. Another method is to implant a number of metallic or synthetic resin elements into a fastener tape in which a core thread is knit or woven.
Multifilament yarns composed of polyester are generally used as materials of these fastener tapes. The sizes of the multifilament yarns are usually, 110 dTex-24 f, 167 dTex-36 f, 330 dTex-72 f, 501 dTex-108 f and the like. In all cases, the size of a single composition filament constituting the multifilament is as large as 4.6 dTex. In case of the woven tape, the number of driving wefts (driving frequency/2.54 cm) is 40 to 60 (the number of driving wefts/2.54 cm). Although in case of the knit tape, a relatively thin yarn (78 dTex-24 f and the like) is used for yarns which constitute wales of chain knitting yarn or tricot knitting yarn, a thick yarn whose single yarn size exceeds 4.6 dTex, such as 110 dTex-24 f and 167 dTex-36 f, is employed for an weft in-laid yarn. Further, the same kind of yarn as the one used in the knit/woven tape is used as the composition yarn of the core thread (twisted thread, or knit cord), for which yarns of 167 dTex-36 f, 330 dTex-72 f, and 501 dTex-108 f are combined.
The slide fastener tape and stringer produced of these filaments having large single yarn size have high rigidity and excellent fastener strength, and are easy to be attached and sewed to a heavy foundation fabric or a fabric made of a relatively hard material used in a shoe and a bag. In this case, the stringer itself is rigid and therefore there is a balance between the stringer and the foundation fabric. However, fashionable woman's clothes, child's clothes and the like having an excellent drape performance have been more preferred recently.
If the above-described rigid slide fastener is sewed on such clothes having flexibility and excellent drape performance, a discomfort feeling is generated because the rear surface of the fastener makes a direct contact with the skin. Further, if the slide fastener to be attached by sewing on a soft foundation fabric is hard, the foundation fabric warps back due to the hardness and stretching phenomenon occurs. It prevents a beautiful curve along the waist portion and back portion of a one-piece dress, skirt and the like and thus improvement is demanded.
As for a conventional method for softening the stringer or fastener tape, for example, in case of the woven tape, a stringer having flexibility is produced by lowering the weft driving density (quantity of wefts) or carrying out a special processing such as depletion processing, softening processing with alkaline solution or the like in dying process. However, this processing cannot avoid an increase in production cost and a reduction in strength of the slide fastener.
The present invention has been achieved to solve the above-described problem and a specific object of the invention is to provide a fastener tape and fastener tape stringer which adapt well to a fabric having flexibility and excellent drape performance when and after a slide fastener is sewed on the fabric, and which secure tape strength and coupling strength required as a slide fastener and have a flexibility and a soft feeling at the same time.